Thursday, October 28, 2010

We hear lot of arguments in our homes, office etc., most of them are rubbish which needs to be trashed. However when we hear an argument between a Chandala (the low caste) and a Sanyasi (highly learned Jnani) what will be the result? We definitely get enlightened by listening to them.

Adi Sankara along with his Sishyas at Varanasi (Kasi) after taking bath at River Ganges (Ganga) was on his way towards Kasi Viswanatha Temple saw a Chandala (dog eater) coming towards them. Lord Siva is said to have come in the disguise of that Chandala. Sankara then uttered “Gacha Gacha” i.e. Move away, Move away.

Now the Chandala posed a few questions to Acharya who was dazed and was taken aback upon hearing his highly enlightened question. Sankara then replied his questions more philosophically. The answers are in the form of a small treatise by Adi Sankara is what is known as “Maneesha Panchakam”.

The word Maneesha meaning “conviction” appear in last line of all the five verse. Adisankara firmly tells and conveys in this sloka that a realized Brahma Jnanai is indeed Guru to him irrespective whether he is a low-caste chandala or a highly learned brahmana. Finally Acharya concludes such a realized person is none other Brahman himself whose feet are fit to be worshipped by Indira. That is the firm conviction of the Acharya.

In a village called Kaladi in Kerala there was a devout couple by name Sivaguru and Aryambal. They were issue less for long and went to Trichur Vadakunnathan (Lord Shiva) Temple and performed puja for 48 days and with the grace of Shiva they were blessed with a son who was born in the “Thiruvathirai” Star. The Child was named Sankara means one who gives prosperity. It was a divine call in the form of Crocodile which helped Sankara to adopt Sanyasa at an early age so as to propagate the philosophy of Advaita Vedanta. He was given Sanyas by his Guru Govinda Bagavatpada who taught Vedas and Advaita Vedanta to Sankara. He advised Sri Sankara to go out in the world and spread this truth throughout the country. Sankara later travelled the length and breadth of the country visiting holy cities and temples and established firmly the advaita philosophy. Sankara was also known as Shanmata Stapakacharya i.e. one who established the Worship of all the six main deities i.e. Shiva, Vishnu, Shakti, Ganesha, Surya and Skanda.

Adisankara also established Peethams or Religious Seats to spread the message of Advaita at Sringeri (Sri Sharada Peetham), Puri (Govardhan Peetham) , Dwaraka (Kalika Peetham), Badrinath (Jyotir Peetham) and at Kanchipuram (Sri Kamakoti Peetham), Adi Sankara’s works includes Bhasya or Commentary on Brahma Sutra, Bhagavad Gita and ten major Upanishads. He had written Prakarana Grantha or Philosophical Treatise like Upadesha Sahasri, Viveka Chudamani etc. Sankara had also written many Stotras or devotional hymns like Soundarya Lahari, Bhaja Govindam, Annapurna ashtakam, Mahishasuramardhini, Subramanya Bujangam etc. Sankara though lived in this mortal world only for 32 year his contribution to the society is of immense by protecting the Vedic Culture and lifted the spirits of humanity which is thriving even today. He is Sankara himself who came to protect the Hindu Religion which is based on the Vedas.

Advaita Philosophy

Advaita Vedanta is based on Scriptures (Sastra), Reason (Yukti) and Experience (Anubhava) and aided by Spiritual Practices (karmas). This philosophy provides a clear-cut way of life to be followed. Starting from childhood, when learning has to start, the philosophy has to be realised in practice throughout one's life, even up to death. This is the reason why this philosophy is called an experiential philosophy. The underlying tenet being "That thou art", meaning that ultimately there is no difference between the experiencer and the experienced (the world) as well as the universal spirit (Brahman). Among the followers of Advaita, as well those of other doctrines, there are believed to have appeared Jivanmuktas, ones liberated while alive. These individuals (commonly called Mahatmas, great souls, among Hindus) are those who realised the oneness of their self and the universal spirit called Brahman.

Lord Sankara Vs Adi Sankara

On a hot summer noon once Jagadguru Adi Sankaracharya at Varanasi along with his disciples went to the sacred river Ganga to perform the mid-day rituals. After completing the rituals they were on their way proceeding towards the temple of Lord Viswanath. On their way the Great Acharya of Advaita saw a Chandala (an outcaste) along with his wife surrounded by four dogs came in front of them. Since they have already taken bath and were proceeding towards the temple the Acharya uttered the Chandala “Gacha Gacha” i.e. move away move away. Now the Chandala encountered Jagad Guru Adi Sankara by cross questioning “By asking to Move Away do you want the body which is made of food to move away from another body which is also made up of food? Or do you want consciousness to move away from consciousness?” These innocent looking remarks led to an unexpected questioning from the Chandala and caused Sankara to give out to the world an immortal poem called “Maneesha Panchakam” which elaborated the Vedantic ideas and brought into focus that even a person belonging to a low caste could rekindle the light of wisdom in the greatest among the great teachers. Sri Sankara’s encounter and the dialogue with the outcaste on the streets of Varanasi were of immense and eternal significance. The Chandala posed two questions to Sankara and Sankara replied in five verses. These five verses have been collectively given the name “Maneesha Panchakam”. The word “Maneesha” means “Conviction” and Panchakam means five verses. The word “Maneesha” appears in the last line in all the five verses.

Maneesha Panchakam in essence captures the Mahavakyas of all the four Vedas.

O Great among the twice born! What is that you want to move away by saying, “Move Away, Move Away”? Do you want the body made up of food to move away from another body made up of food? Or do you want consciousness to move away from consciousness?

Is there any difference between the reflection of the Sun in the waters of the Ganga and its reflection in the water in a gutter in the quarters of the outcastes? Is there any difference between the space in a Gold Pot and in a Mud Pot? What is this illusion of difference in the form, “This is a Brahmana and this is an Outcaste? in the indwelling self which is the ripple-free ocean of bliss and pure consciousness?

Sankara’s Answers

Verse 1

If a person has attained the firm knowledge that he is not an object of perception, but is that pure consciousness which shines clearly in the states of waking, dream and deep sleep and which as the witness of the whole universe dwells in all bodies from that of creator Brahma to that of an ant, then He is my Guru irrespective of whether he is an outcaste or a Brahmana. This is my conviction.

Verse 2

“I am Brahman (Pure Consciousness). It is pure consciousness that appears as this Universe. All this is only something conjured up by me because of avidya (nescience) which is composed of the three gunas (Sattva, Rajas and Tamas). One who has attained this definite realization about Brahman which is bliss itself, eternal, supreme and pure, is my Guru, whether he is an outcaste or a Brahmana. This is my conviction.

Verse 3

Having come to the definite conclusion, under the instructions of his Guru, that the entire Universe is always perishable, he who, with a calm and pure mind constantly meditates on Brahman and who has burnt his past and future sins in the fire of knowledge, submits his present body to the operation of his praarabdha karma. This is my conviction.

Verse 4

The Self or Pure Consciousness is experienced clearly within by animals, men and gods as ‘I’. It is by the reflection of this pure consciousness that the mind, senses and body which are all insentient appear to be sentient. External objects are perceived only because of this consciousness. This Self is however, concealed by the very mind, senses and body which are illumined by it, just as the sun is concealed by clouds. The yogi who with a calm mind always meditates on this Self is my Guru. This is my conviction.

Verse 5

The Self, which is Brahman, is the eternal ocean of supreme bliss. A minute fraction of that bliss is enough to satisfy Indra and other Gods. By meditating on the Self with a perfectly calm mind the sage experiences fulfillment. The person whose mind has become identified with this Self is not a mere knower of Brahman, but Brahman himself. Such a person, whoever he may be, is one whose feet are fit to be worshipped by Indra himself. This is my definite conviction.After hearing the above replies Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati who were in the disguise of Chandala showed their real form to Adi Sankara blessed him and disappeared miraculously. It is said the Lords came there to test the depth of Sri Sankara’s spiritual understanding.

Lets worship the Lotus feet of Sankara to realize and experience the Brahman within ourself and attain the state of Jivan Muktas.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Everytime while on my way to Kanchipuram I used to see a huge arch with an inscription “Bhagavat Ramanujar Avatharitha Sriperumbudur” i.e. Birthplace of Srimad Ramanuja kindling my interest to visit but never attempted. This time I need to go to Kanchipuram to get the blessings of Kanchi Acharya for my Son’s Upanayanam, I decided to visit the temple first and then proceed to Kanchipuram. Mine and my Sister’s family started from Chennai and proceeded on the Chennai-Bangalore Highway. After crossing Poonthamalli we fuelled our cars. The road was excellent and within a hour we reached Sriperumbudur. While entering the rajagopuram the Jeer of Sriperumbudur was coming out and we paid our obeisance to the revered Jeer and got the blessings. We then had nice darshan of the Lord Adikesavaperumal, Yathirajanathavalli Thayar and Srimad Ramanuja.

We then drove to the main road and parked our vehicles outside Shri Rajeev Gandhi Memorial Site to have our breakfast. My better half had prepared Idlis dipped with Mollagapoddi for all of us and we took our breakfast on the bylane just opposite to the Memorial site. This is the place where Rajeev Gandhi was assassinated while on his election campaign in the year 1991. The memorial is beautifully constructed and well maintained. After finishing our breakfast we then proceeded to Kanchipuram. We had the darshan of both the Kanchi Acharyas i.e. Jayenthra Saraswati Swamigal and Vijeyandra Saraswati Swamigal. Nadu periyava called us and blessed everyone with Mantrakshatai and sanctified the invitation card and subsequently we also got the blessings from Balaperiyava. We then placed the invitation card at Mahaperiyava adhistanam where the Pundit read the invitation card to Periyava and placed the card in the hands of Mahaperiyava Deity which is placed below the adhistanam. Mahaperiyava showered his blessings such that the Upanayam went of very well. Please read on the article to know more about Sriperumbudur Adikesava Perumal temple.

Happy Reading!

A.V. DevanChennai20-10-2010

Temple Visit – Sri Adhi Kesava Perumal Temple - Sriperumbudur

Sriperumbudur which is located on the Chennai – Bangalore Highway (NH 4) about 40 Kilometers South-West of Chennai. This is the birth place of Saint Ramanuja, great Philosopher of Vaishnavism. The town hosts Sri Adi Kesava Perumal Temple which is dedicated to Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu in the standing posture here is known as Sri Adhikesava Perumal with his consorts Shreedevi and Bhoodevi bestows his abundant grace on his devotees. The divine mother [Thayar] is known as “Sri Yatirajanathavalli Thayar” meaning she is the consort of the master to Yathiraja i.e. Ramanuja. This is the only temple where Goddess Lakshmi has a name attributed to a devotee of the Lord. She is a varaprasadi who grants all wishes. The temple is in the south Indian style of temple architecture with feature of both Chola and Vijayanagara periods. It was constructed in the later Chola and Vijayanagara period. There is an inscription dated 1572 which mentions Srirangaraya I of the Vijayanagara period. Vijayanagara sources mention that in 1556 during the reign of Rama Raya a gift of 31 villages was made at the request of one Sadasiva to maintain this temple. The temple has a golden vimana with Sri Ramanuja’s image etched on it. This is the first golden vimana erected in the year 1912. To the right of the sanctum sanctorum is the Sannathi of Saint Ramanuja. Other deities like Rama, Andal, Udayavar, Desikan, and Alavandhar are enshrined in this temple complex.

Legends associated with the Temple

Legend has it that the builders of the temple tried to erect the pillars but owing to their excessive size and weight they failed and gave up the endeavor at nightfall. The next morning to their utter surprise they found the pillars duly installed. The people concluded that only giants or bhootas could have accomplished this. This is why the place came to be called Sri Perum Budur (great town of giants).

Another legend is that one day Lord Shiva started dancing in Kailash as if he was obsessed. Lord Shiva’s attendants known as Bhuta Ganas who were residing at Kailash seeing this strange behavior of their Master were amused and started laughing. Enraged, Shiva cursed them to be born on Earth. To get rid of the Shiva’s curse Bootha Ganas did penance here and Lord Shiva forgave them. He asked the divine architect Anantha to build a pond and when Bootha Ganas bathed in it, they could wash away their sins. This pond is called ‘Anantha Saras’ and in accordance with the wishes of the Devas, the Lord built a city called ‘Bootha Puri’, now called Sriperumbudur.

According to another legend, King Ambarisha was on a hunting expedition, when he spotted a tiger attacking a cow. In order to save the cow, he killed the tiger, but the cow also died in the process. He was grief-stricken and then a heavenly voice, asked him to go to Sriperumbudur, bathe in ‘Anantha Saras’ and then pray to Lord Narayana who would forgive his sins. The King dutifully obeyed the instructions. Then Lord appeared before him and told him that Adi Sesha would be born in his lineage and so asked him to build a temple. True to the Lord's words, after many years, Adi Sesha was born to a devout Brahmin Vaishnavite couple, Asuri and Kesavacharya, in Sriperumbudur and was named Ramanuja.

Than Ukantha Thirumeni

Sriperumbudur is the birth place of Saint Ramanuja the great philosopher of Vaishnavism. It was the presence of Mahavishnu as Adhikesava Perumal here made Asuri Kesavacharya father of Ramanuja settle here. Ramanuja was born in the year 1017 AD on the 12th day of the month of Chithirai under the star Thiruvadirai. There are three main Ramanuja Idols which are referred and located as given below.

Than Ugantha Thirumeni (Image sanctified by Ramanuja himself) at Sriperumbudur

Than Ana Thirumeni (Original boday of Saint Ramanuja still preserved) at Srirangam

The Ramanuja Vigraha was made when the Acharya was living and it is said Ramanuja hugged it and passed on all his powers to this Vigraha which is known as “Than Ugantha Thirumeni” i.e. the body touched by him. It is said when the Stapathi opened the eye of the vigraha with the chisel, blood came out of the eyes of the teacher, who was then residing far away at Srirangam. When asked why, the preceptor explained that it was because the idol was "himself". After the vigraha was sanctified, Ramanuja became weak and shuffled off his mortal coil in a fortnight. This is interpreted as his prana coming to abide in the vigraha at Sriperumbudur. The idol here is believed to be very powerful and worshipping it will confer all benefits, including Moksha. There is a strong belief and fact of course, that if we drink Thirumanjana (Abiseka) milk of Sri Ramanujacharya , all sickness will be cured. In fact, in Sriperumbudur, Ramanuja is addressed as "Swamy'. On the festival day, the idol is bejewelled, dressed in glittering robes and carrying a sword, indicating Ramanuja's status as the king of saints i.e. Yathi Raja.

Vishishtadvaita Philosophy profounded by Saint Ramanuja

The Vishistadvaita Philosophy is a sub-school of the Vedanta school of Hindu Philosophy. The other school of thoughts being Advaita and Dwaita. Vishistadvaita philosophy was propogated by Saint Ramanuja. Vishistadvaita i.e. Vishita + Advaita literally means Qualified Advaita Philosophy.

In Advaita philosophy the Soul (i.e. Atma) is identified with Brhman.

Dwaita stresses a strict distinction between the God and the individual souls. (Jiva).

In Vishitadvaita – Brahman alone exists but is characterized by multiplicity.

Bhakti Yoga is the sole means of liberation in Visishtadvaita. Through Bhakti (devotion), a Jiva ascends to the realm of the Lord, where it continues to delight in His service. Karma Yoga and Jnana Yoga are natural outcomes of Bhakti, total surrender, as the devotee acquires the knowledge that the Lord is the inner self. A devotee realizes his own state as dependent on, and supported by, and being led by the Lord, who is the Master. One is to lead a life as an instrument of the Lord, offering all his thought, word, and deed to the feet of the Lord. One is to see the Lord in everything and everything in Him. This is the unity in diversity achieved through devotion.

Sri Vaishnavism

Ramanujacharya puts forth the view that both the Supreme Goddess Lakshmi and Supreme God Narayana together constitute Brahman - the Absolute. Sri Lakshmi is the female personification of Brahman and Narayana is the male personification of Brahman, but they are both inseparable, co-eternal, co-absolute and are always substantially one. Thus, in reference to these dual aspects of Brahman, the Supreme is referred to in the Sri Vaishnava Sampradaya as Sriman Narayana.

Please visit the temple and get the blessings of Adikesava Perumal, Yathirajanathavalli and Ramanuja!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

The most expressive feature in our face is the eye. Eyes are non-verbal communicators and convey our moods. The word ‘Nayan’ means ‘eye’ ‘Tara’ means ‘star’. Nayantara means one whose eye shines like a star. We are going to read an incident about a person who loved a lady whose eyes were dazzling like a star.

Sorry Guys! we are not going to read about Tamil film stars Prabhudeva and Nayantara love story in this article, rather we are going to know about an ordinary couple who later through the divine grace became great Shri Vaishnavas by the divine grace of Saint Ramanuja and Lord Ranganatha.

This article will definitely help us to know the real and eternal beauty which we should love so as to cross nescience. Saint Ramanuja who live some thousand year before was devoted to the service of God and Mankind. The physical limitations and the social taboos were washed away by the flood of Ramanuja’s divine love.

Srirangam is known as “Bulokha Vaikundam” i.e. Heaven on earth where you can feel the presence of the Lord. Lord Ranganatha has been extolled by Azhwars and sung by music trinity Tyagaraja and Muthuswamy Deekshitar. Such is the divinity you will experience if you have darshan of Lord Ranganatha!

Please read on to know more about real beauty and the greatness of Saint Ramanuja and the divine presence of Lord Ranganatha.

Let us all behold his form!

Adiyen Ramanuja Dasan

Narayana Or Nayantara?

Urangavilli & Ponnachiyar

Woraiyur or Urayur is located near the city of Tiruchirapalli or Trichy on the southern bank of river Kavery in Tamilnadu. It has a history dating back as early as 272 – 232 BC and was the capital of Chola Kings. In the Chola Kingdom there was a King by name Akalangan who was ruling the Urayur region. The Kings court there was a Royal Wrestler by name Urangavilli. Urangavilli was married to a beautiful lady by name Ponnachiyar. The word ‘Pon’ in tamil means gold and she was also glittering like a gold and had very beautiful and dazzling eyes. You just cannot take your eyes off once you see her beauty, such is the charm of her eyes (Aishwarya Rai?!). There is a saying in Tamil “Mogam Mupathu Naal and Aasai Aruvathu Naal” i.e. you will be obsessed with your wife for 30 days and affection for 60 days after that scuffle starts between the couple. However for Urangavillli the ‘mogam’ [love] continued forever and his love towards her turned into madness such that he use to carry an umbrella behind her to protect her beauty!

Once Urangavilli along with Ponnachiyar was attending the temple Chithirai festival. In the festivals the Utsavar is taken out of the temple for procession for the benefit of people so that people can have the darshan of the Lord. When the procession was going on Urangavilli instead of witnessing the Lord was as usual was carrying the umbrella behind his wife so as to protect her from the sun rays to preserve the lady’s beauty.

At this point in time the great Vaishnava Acharya Saint Ramanuja along with his disciples was passing through that area and saw this bizarre scene where Urangavilli carrying the umbrella without even bothering about others and was also not witnessing the God’s procession. One of the disciple of Ramanuja laughed and made mockery of him and muttered that he is crazy about his wife. The other sishyas also joined in making fun of him. However Ramanuja intervened and told them not to ridicule at him and told them his act indeed shows how much love he his having towards his wife. He then asked them to bring Urangavilli to him. Some of his disciples approached Urangavilli and informed that their Acharya wants to meet him. Urangavilli would have done lot of penance otherwise how an Acharya like Ramanuja would call him. Such is the mercy of great Acharyas who guides the ignorant people voluntarily out of compassion towards all.

Ramanuja then asked Urangavilli instead of seeing the God’s procession why he was seeing her wife and was he not ashamed for that?. Urangavilli replied that his wife is the most beautiful in the world and he is a slave for her beauty and hence was not bothered how others think of him. Ramanuja listened quietly and then asked him if he shows a Personality who is even more beautiful than his wife will he become the slave of that person? Urangavilli immediately agreed for this. Ramanuja then took Urangavilli inside the Srirangam temple and asked the Bhattar to show the deepa aradhana to the Lord Ranganatha who was in the reclining posture. Ramanuja asked the Bhattar to show the deepam near the Lords eyes and asked Urangavilli to have darshan of the eyes of Lord Ranganatha.

Azhwars have sung in the Nalayira Divya Prabandham that after seeing Lord Ranganatha they are overpowered by his beauty and after seeing Ranganatha they don’t want to see anything else and they are also not interested in taking up anything else even if they are offered to rule the Indira Loka. Such is the devotion of the Azhwars. See the two poems (Pasurams) from Prabandham as given below.

It is not a surprise that after witnessing the beauty of the Lord’s lots eyes Urangavilli was taken by the divine beauty of the Lord which cannot be equated with the mortal beauty. Urangavilli was totally mesmerized. He immediately fell at the feet of Ramanuja. Later he along with his wife became great devotees of the Lord Ranganatha and were involved in serving Saint Ramanuja’s mission.

Akalanga to Akalanga Naataazhvan

Urangavilli then used to spend his free time in the service of Ramanuja. He also liberally donated his salary to the Mutt. Upon seeing the change in Urangavilli King Akalanga told him that he can spend full time for the service of Ramanuja and even asked him to get his salary from the court. However Ramanuja disagreed for this and told that one should not get the salary without working and asked Urangavilli to return it to the King. Akalanga was surprised over Ramanuja’s attitude and immediately met Ramanuja. Ramanuja then instructed Akalanga about Vaishnava Dharma. Later King Akalanga became Akalanga Naataazhvan and was given incharge for running the Srirangam Temple.

Greatness of Urangavilli & Ponnachi

Ramanuja lived in this mortal world for 120 years. During his later years when he was in Srirangam, used to take bath in the River Kavery and while walking back to his ashram he used to lean on the shoulders of his Brahmin disciples, Kuresa [Kurathazhwan] and Mudaliyandan. After Urangavilli joined Ramanuja took the help of Urangavilli also while returning from Kaveri and used to lean on the shoulders of Urangavilli. Some of his greedy brahmin disciples were not readily accepting his gesture and asked him how he could touch Urangavilli who is not a Brahmin. Sri Ramanuja said that it was a recognition of merit rather than an act of indulgence. Urangavilli had no egotism in him and no attachment and had given up all his belongings to join the Dasas, the Acharya explained.

He created an incident to prove his statement. He instructed through one of his disciple to tear the dhotis of the greedy disciples who were opposed to Urangavilli without knowing them. The next day when those greedy disciples came to know their dhotis were torn they abused and were quarrelling with each other. Few days later days Ramanuja asked Urangavilli to stay in the Mutt and instructed one of his disciple to go and steal the golden earring of Ponnachiyar. When the disciples went to steal the golden earring Ponnachiyar realized that the disciples have come to steal and acted as if she is sleeping so that they can remove her earrings. When they removed the earring from one side she was about to turn the other side so as to enable them to take the other ear ring also. However the disciples misunderstood that she has woken up and ran from that place.

The next day Ramanuja instructed those disciples who were earlier opposing Urangavilli to go and witness what is happening in Urangavilli’s house. Urangavilli returned the next day and when he came to know about the incident questioned Ponnachiyar why she had not given them the second ring also. She replied that she was about to turn the other side they misunderstood and left the place. Both Urangavilli and Ponnachiyar were lamenting for not giving the second ring also to the disciples of Ramanuja. The disciples heard the entire conversation of them and then went to Ramanuja to pardon them for their discrimination towards Urangavilli. Thus Ramanuja made them realize the greatness of Urangavilli and Ponnachaiyar.

Let us all pray to Ramauja and Ranganatha that let noble thought pervade and enlighten us at all times!Bibliography/Reference